Synopsis: In the follow-up to Lisa Desrochers’ explosive new adult novel A Little Too Far, Alessandro Moretti must face the life he escaped and the girl he left behind.

Twenty-two-year-old Hilary McIntyre would like nothing more than to forget her past. As a teenager abandoned to the system, she faced some pretty dark times. But now that’s all behind her. Hilary has her life on track, and there’s no way she’ll head down that road again.

Until Alessandro Moretti—the one person who can make her remember—shows up on her doorstep. He’s even more devastatingly gorgeous than before, and he’s much too close for comfort. Worse, he sees right through the walls she’s built over these last eight years, right into her heart and the secrets she’s guarding.

As Hilary finds herself falling back in love with the man who, as a boy, both saved and destroyed her, she must decide: Past or future? Truth or lies?

Lisa Desrochers’ A Little Too Much is the second book in her A Little Too Far series. If you’ve read the synopsis for both books then you know Alessandro doesn’t get the girl in A Little Too Far (I really hope you don’t consider this as a spoiler). I’ll be truthful, I’m team Alessandro all the way and still believe Lexie chose the wrong guy. Either way, I’m glad Alessandro got his own book because we get to spend a little more time with him.

We have good characterization and I really liked getting to know Alessandro better. In A Little Too Far, he’s reserved and there’s a good reason; he’s about to enter the priesthood and there’s a certain code of conduct. He revealed a little of his past in Too Far, but not enough to fully understand him and we get to know his background alongside Hilary. I loved this! As for Hilary, she’s vulnerable, but won’t admit it. She’s that girl who talks tough and walks with strut, but deep down inside is lost. It’s easy to sympathize with her especially when we learn about her past, but I wanted her to soften up a bit. I also wanted her to ask for help when she needed it. I understand she’s had a difficult life and her detachment regarding certain situations and how she conducts herself is her way of dealing with things. It just frustrated me a little. We have a few secondary characters that are important. There’s Mallory, Hilary’s older sister and her family. Then there’s Hilary’s boyfriend Brett and her friend Jessica.

Narrative is first person via Hilary and this is her story. We don’t need to go on a personal journey with Alessandro since he’s come to grips with his past, but Hilary needed this journey and it makes perfect sense that it’s told via her perspective. At times, Hilary and Alessandro sound older than what you find in a typical New Adult novel. If Desrochers had changed their age to early 30’s, it would have made no difference to the plot. I realize both characters have had a difficult life and had to grow up fast, hence the reason for them sounding older. Furthermore, Alessandro was almost ordained as a priest so he’s going to sound a little more mature and understands life’s problems. What I loved about A Little Too Much? The plot! I’m not saying A Little Too Far didn’t have one, but this time we get to spend time with our main protagonists and watch them fall in love. Here we aren’t told someone is perfect, but rather we get to see it and experience it. A Little Too Much has everything a New Adult novel should be: it has character growth while dealing with life and trying to figure things out.

While I really enjoyed A Little Too Much, I did have a few problems with the book. The first is regarding Brett. He was always showing up at Hilary’s auditions and she relied on him way too much. I get it; he’s managed to land several roles and the theatre world is small enough that everyone is pretty familiar with each other. I just wish Hilary had realized that he was probably stalling her career because he realized her potential and that made him feel inferior. He needed someone to need him. The second is regarding the big secret Hilary is hiding. We don’t get any indication that she’s hiding something until a little over 60% in and even then I had my suspicions. I won’t go into detail because I don’t want to spoil the big reveal, but the way it was handled and the aftermath just didn’t sit well with me.

Whereas art is featured predominately in A Little Too Far, here, Desrochers incorporates the city of New York into the story. I adored it! I’ve never been to New York City, but I could easily picture the city and that’s further proof at what a talented writer Desrochers is. If you really enjoyed the art aspect of Too Far, there is some mention of it in Too Much and of course we get to spend some time in museums.

I just adored Lisa Desrochers’ A Little Too Much! Overall, I just really enjoyed the interaction between Alessandro and Hilary. My favorite scenes involve a fake cockroach and Hilary at the youth center. When Hilary learns what the kids call Alessandro and she talks about theatre with them, that sealed the deal for me. It was this particular scene that I knew they’d be okay and I could easily imagine their future.

About Lisa
Lisa Desrochers lives in central California with her husband and two very busy daughters. There is never a time that she can be found without a book in her hand, and she adores stories that take her to new places, and then take her by surprise. Look for her New Adult novel, A Little Too Far, courtesy of HarperCollins Sept 2013, and the first companion, A Little Too Much, in Nov 2013. Also in stores is her YA, Personal Demons trilogy (Macmillan).